RISHI Sunak today vowed to spend billions fighting climate change in a message of “hope” at COP27.
Delivering his first major speech on the global stage, Mr Sunak insisted that “when nations come together in common cause, there is always room for hope”.
The PM pledged that Britain will deliver spending £11.6bn on environmental projects.
These include improving clean energy access, protecting ecosystems and stopping forests from being chopped down.
Mr Sunak flew to Egypt for COP27 last night, after originally saying he wouldn’t go.
At the climate summit today the PM held face-to-face meetings with world leaders including Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and France’s Emmanuel Macron.
In a keynote speech the PM urged the world to stay committed to the goals of COP26 in Glasgow.
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Mr Sunak urged leaders to stay striving for a net zero future.
And he implored them to work together so that global temperatures don’t rise above 1.5 degrees.
The PM said: “By honouring the promises we made in Glasgow and by directing public and private finance towards the protection of our planet, we can turn our struggle against climate change into a global mission for new jobs and clean growth.
“And we can bequeath our children a greener planet and a more prosperous future. That’s a legacy we could be proud of.
“So as we come together once again in common cause today, there really is room for hope.”
Last year just one third of the global economy committed to net zero.
That figure has ballooned to 90 per cent today.
The PM added that although “finances are tough right now” promises on climate finance should be unbreakable.
“I spent last week working on the difficult decisions needed to ensure confidence and economic stability in my own country,” Mr Sunak said.
“But I can tell you today that the United Kingdom is delivering on our commitment of £11.6 billion.”
As well as Mr Sunak, Boris Johnson also travelled to Egypt to attend COP27.
The pair didn’t meet, but the PM said he was “really glad” his predecessor attended.
This morning BoJo weighed in on a growing international row over “climate reparations” at a Q&A event with the New York Times.
Some eco-activists and developing countries want rich states to pay up for damage caused by climate change.
Labour want the government to give money to countries like Pakistan, which recently suffered from extreme flooding.
But today BoJo said that Britain “simply doesn’t have the financial resources”.
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The ex-PM blasted: “That whole concept is tough. Who devices the reparations?
“Let’s look to the future – that’s what I think we should be doing. Let’s look at what we can do to trigger private sector investment and fix the problem now.”
